Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Benjamin Philip Williams | ||
Date of birth | 27 August 1982 | ||
Place of birth | Manchester, England | ||
Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||
Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
Club information | |||
Current team
|
Bury | ||
Number | 1 | ||
Youth career | |||
1999–2002 | Manchester United | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2002–2004 | Manchester United | 0 | (0) |
2002 | → Coventry City (loan) | 0 | (0) |
2003 | → Chesterfield (loan) | 14 | (0) |
2004 | → Crewe Alexandra (loan) | 10 | (0) |
2004–2008 | Crewe Alexandra | 125 | (0) |
2008–2009 | Carlisle United | 31 | (0) |
2009–2012 | Colchester United | 115 | (0) |
2012–2014 | Hibernian | 74 | (0) |
2014–2016 | Bradford City | 57 | (0) |
2016– | Bury | 21 | (0) |
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:10, 27 December 2016 (UTC). |
Benjamin Philip "Ben" Williams (born 27 August 1982) is an English footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Football League One side Bury.
He started his career as a Manchester United trainee, where he made a few pre-season appearances and was an unused substitute for a couple of games. Williams was loaned out to several clubs, including Coventry City, Chesterfield and Crewe Alexandra.
Williams signed on a permanent deal with Crewe in 2004, after his release from Manchester United. After two reasonable seasons with Crewe, Williams picked up an injury and was replaced by Ross Turnbull, Williams' season was made even worse when he was diagnosed with meningitis. By the end of the season, Wlliams had fully recovered and returned to the team at the start of the 2006–07 season. He moved to Carlisle United for the 2008–09 season, before signing for Colchester. He moved to Scottish club Hibernian in 2012, but was released after the club's relegation in 2014.
During the 2003–04 season, he was placed on the bench for the first team when Fabien Barthez was injured. He was loaned out to several clubs during his career, including spells at Coventry City, where he did not play a competitive game, and Chesterfield, who were down to just one goalkeeper when Carl Muggleton was ruled out for around six weeks with a double stress fracture of the fibula. Chesterfield manager Dave Rushbury said, "We must be doing something right because Manchester United don't let players out on loan unless they are confident they will be properly looked after. We have had the situation in hand following Carl Muggleton's injury and are delighted to welcome Ben Williams now that he is available to come on loan to us". Manchester United agreed to allow Williams to stay with the Spireites for a second month, following the news that first team goalkeeper, Carl Muggleton, was not expected to be fit for a further few weeks.